Hoodoo Gurus new CD Purity of Essence £6.99 Amazon

Nearly three decades after this Australian band debuted on college radio with Stoneage Romeos and Mars Needs Guitars, changes in the line-up, break-ups and reformations, hiatuses, and one member's recovery from cancer haven't dimmed the group's energy.

Fronted by singer-songwriter Dave Faulkner, the band's more soulful than in their earlier years, and though they're not as playful in doling out rapid-fire pop-culture references, they're still plenty of fun and, best of all, they rock. The band packs many styles into this hour-long, sixteen song album.

There are Stones-y rockers ("What's in it for Me?"), Clash-styled martial beats ("A Few Home Truths"), lumbering twang that suggests a meeting of Lee Hazlewood and Neil Diamond ("Over Nothing?"), retro soul ("Only in America") and country-rock ("Somebody, Take Me Home").